Liang Xuanting looked at the person opposite him and declared, "Then, as you wish, today I shall attack the city!"
At that moment, the sound of a horn suddenly blared from the city wall.
Nan Canghai yelled, "Retreat!"
Everyone turned their horses and retreated back inside the city gates.
Liang Xuanting quickly spurred his horse, wanting to give chase.
"Danger! Xiao Ting, come back!"
Arrows immediately rained down from within the city gate. Liang Wei shouted, "Protect the Young Master!"
The Southern Frontier soldiers instantly moved forward, forming a line, raising their shields to fend off the barrage of arrows.
By the time they retreated to a safe distance, a thunderous roar erupted from inside the city gate.
"Ha!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
There were shouts of battle, the thundering of hooves—a formation that sounded as if thousands of troops and horses were present.
Jun Mo stood atop the city wall, clad in a moon-white brocade robe, standing tall against the wind, his posture upright and exceptionally graceful.
A faint smile played at the corners of his lips, as if this were not a battlefield, but a leisurely stroll through an art gallery.
"Jun Hui's method hasn't taken effect yet; we need to wait patiently for a few more days. Judging by the commotion inside the city, if we truly fought, we wouldn't gain any advantage!" Liang Wei stated.
Liang Xuanting cast a resentful glance at Jun Mo on the city wall, gritting his teeth, "Retreat!"
Watching the Southern Frontier forces withdraw, Wei Yuanling laughed, "Ziyan, they've retreated. You're truly something."
Lan Canghai exclaimed, "This 'Empty Fort Strategy' was brilliantly executed!"
Ji Kui chuckled, "When I first entered the city gate and saw these soldiers holding ox horns and clay pots, I didn't know what they were going to do. Turns out these ox horns have such a marvelous use."
Their few hundred men had created such a massive commotion entirely with the help of horns and clay pots.
Jun Mo's expression turned serious. "This method can be used once or twice, but it's not a long-term solution. We still need to produce the antidote as quickly as possible."
Everyone nodded, hoping that Elder Dai would have some progress.
In the afternoon, Elder Dai finally returned.
As soon as the news spread, everyone gathered in the study.
"How is it? Have you found the source? Where is their poisoning point?" Wei Yuanling asked.
"This old man carefully inspected along the river, and if there are no surprises, the poisoning point is right here!" Elder Dai pointed to a spot on the topographical map.
"This is about a li upstream from our water collection point. Our soldiers collect water early every morning, so I believe they start poisoning before dawn."
Jun Mo said, "That makes things easier. Yuanling, take some men and set up an ambush here. When darkness falls, we'll catch them like a turtle in a jar!"
"Good!"
Lan Yan added, "I'll go too. I'm familiar with the terrain here and know best where to set an ambush without being easily discovered."
She didn't quite trust Wei Yuanling, always feeling he was a bit unreliable.
Elder Dai said, "Once we catch them, we'll see if we can get some clues from them. If we rely solely on testing the river water to identify the poison, it will take too long. If we can find undiluted poison on the perpetrators, I believe it will save a lot of time."
Wei Yuanling looked at Lan Yan and said, "Then let's go now!"
The two of them led their men to the location Elder Dai had indicated, setting up an ambush and quietly waiting for nightfall.
The sky gradually darkened. Apart from the calls of birds, there was no other sound.
"Why aren't they here yet? Are they not coming tonight?" Wei Yuanling whispered.
Lan Yan coldly said, "Don't speak."
Wei Yuanling shut his mouth, but after a moment, he spoke again, "Elder Dai said they might only appear an hour before dawn. That means we have to stay here all night!"
Lan Yan snapped, "Be quiet!"
Wei Yuanling turned his head, looking at the woman beside him. In the moonlight, her serene face appeared even colder.
"Girls should smile more often. You look very pretty when you smile."
Lan Yan reached her limit. "If you talk again, go back! This mission concerns the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers and warhorses in the military camp; it's a matter of grave importance!"
Wei Yuanling finally fell completely silent.
The two of them hid behind the dirt mound like that for several hours.
During the night, a mist rose in the mountains, and the mountain wind was chilling.
Lan Yan suddenly felt a warmth on her body and turned her head to look.
Wei Yuanling grinned, whispering, "Girls should take care of themselves."
In the moonlight, Wei Yuanling's broad, white teeth made him look somewhat foolish.
Lan Yan's heart softened.
Wei Yuanling then added, "There are still several hours left. Do you want to lean on me and get some sleep? I'll keep watch."
Lan Yan shook her head and replied, "No need."
Then came another period of silence.
After about half an hour, Lan Yan felt a weight on her shoulder. She turned her head and her eyes widened in disbelief.
He was actually asleep!
But seeing the dark circles under his eyes, and remembering that he had to help patrol the city wall every night, she suppressed the urge to wake him.
Never mind. For the sake of him lending her his clothes, she wouldn't wake him up.
Lan Yan continued to stare intently at the riverbank.
"Wei Yuanling, wake up, quickly wake up."
A sudden whisper reached her ear, and Wei Yuanling jolted awake.
Wei Yuanling rubbed his slightly itching ear, then quickly looked towards the riverbank.
Sure enough, several sneaky figures emerged from the forest and headed towards the river.
"Go!" Lan Yan commanded, and a team of men quickly surrounded the figures.
The few individuals panicked. Seeing no escape, they ran towards the river.
"Stop them! Grab the medicine bottles!"
Those individuals threw the medicine bottles into the river.
Wei Yuanling gritted his teeth, leaped forward, caught a medicine bottle, and threw it towards Lan Yan, yelling, "Catch!"
With a "splash," he fell into the water.
Lan Yan caught the medicine bottle and shouted, "Wei Yuanling!"
The river flowed swiftly, and Wei Yuanling was nowhere to be seen.
Seeing that the poisoners had been captured, Lan Yan walked to the riverbank and shouted loudly, "Wei Yuanling!"
"Get out!"
"Are you an idiot? You can't even swim, but you went to grab a medicine bottle!"
"Get out..."
Tianqi soldiers also rushed forward, shouting, "Young Master Wei!"
"Miss, I can swim, I'll go look!"
Lan Yan nodded and said, "Be careful, search downstream!"
Then she looked at the water again, her heart somehow feeling heavy.
"Whoosh!"
After a loud splash, Wei Yuanling surfaced, laughing heartily, "I'm here! Hahahaha..."
Lan Yan was startled for a moment, then instantly turned and walked away.
Wei Yuanling, seeing that his prank had gone too far, quickly climbed ashore and chased after her.
"Hey, are you mad?"
"Don't be mad, I apologize to you."
"I was wrong, I was wrong, please forgive me!"
...
Lan Yan and her group returned to the City Lord's Residence, handed the medicine bottle to Elder Dai, and then turned to leave.
Everyone looked at Wei Yuanling.
Elder Dai asked, "What's wrong with that girl?"
Wei Yuanling rubbed his nose and said, "I played a prank, and she got angry. It's nothing, I'll go apologize to her later. Elder Dai, this is the poison; please take a look."
Elder Dai took the medicine bottle and said, "I'll go back to the pharmacy to research it."
With that, he took the bottle and left.
Ji Huaiyan patted Wei Yuanling's shoulder and said, "Impressive! You actually managed to make Miss Lan angry, amazing!"
They had been here for so long and had never seen Lan Yan get angry.
Wei Yuanling grimaced and said, "Stop making sarcastic remarks. This prank went too far."
Wei Xiyong glanced at his son, then at Lan Canghai, who was lowering his head to examine the topographical map, and the corners of his mouth subtly curved upwards.
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